With well plans and licenses in place to drill a well, exploration and production (E&P) companies turn to their to petroleum services suppliers to put their drilling plans into action. The next step in getting a well drilled is preparing the lease for the arrival of equipment, which often requires building access roads and fences, and installing the pad where the rig will be placed.
With well plans and licenses in place to drill a well, exploration and production (E&P) companies turn to their to petroleum services suppliers to put their drilling plans into action. The next step in getting a well drilled is preparing the lease for the arrival of equipment, which often requires building access roads and fences, and installing the pad where the rig will be placed.
Drilling contractors will then move rigs onto wellsites and set up the equipment needed to drill a well. Drilling rigs are used to explore the area of interest and to determine the viability of a well. With a detailed well plan in place, the E&P companies have determined the type of drilling rig they need for their well, which is determined by cost, availability of equipment, drilling depth, site and reservoir characteristics, and the type of well to be drilled (gas or oil).
Today’s drilling rigs create less waste, and are smaller and more efficient so they can be moved easily from place to place with less impact on the land.
The most common rigs are known as singles, doubles or triples. These categories refer to how many lengths of 9.5 metre pipe can stand in the rig’s derrick. On a single, the derrick holds one length of pipe. A double holds two, and a triple holds three. (Source: CAPP, CAODC)
Drilling rigs are designed to be assembled and disassembled quickly, and are moved onto leases with flatbed trucks. To watch a video of a rig being torn down and moved click here.
When it comes to setting up a rig or “rigging up” they are designed to make this as easy as possible. The rigs are hinged so that they unfold like a jackknife, and cables and pulleys hoist it into the position. Other rig components such as the motor controls, blowout preventers, pumps and mud mixing equipment are designed in sections for easy hookup. (Source: Our Petroleum Challenge)
Once the drilling rig reaches the oil and gas target, a service rig, which is smaller and can be moved more easily, will be moved on to the well to get the well on line. Service rigs perform various work including completion, abandonment and well maintenance.
Drilling rig usage is an important indicator of activity in the oilpatch as each active drilling rig translates into 135 direct and indirect jobs across many sectors. (Source: Canadian Energy Research Institute) However, the usage of drilling rigs fluctuates each quarter with the first quarter seeing the greatest activity with the year’s coldest temperatures freezing the land and allowing for heavy equipment to move onto leases.
For example, during the week of September 11, 2012 there were 350 drilling rigs active in Western Canada out of a possible 815 rigs available or a 57% usage rate, compared to the first quarter of 2012 which saw a 68 per cent usage rate. (Source: CAODC)